Poetry

The Floated child speaks

Dear Mum, I know
The volume of tears
You shed, is bigger than the river
I was pushed into.
The flames of criticism burn you alive,
The spear of curse penetrates your heart,
Rest and sleep shall never come to you
For the crime you did!
Yet, I know how you tried to feed us,
To open our eyes,
A single hand you were
The bread winner of us,
Failed everything in the face of difficulties
And a wrong solution
Was your choice.

Now, the arm of law
Squeezes your throat
And it is said it should be.
But, dearest Mum,
For mothering me
Are you responsible
For everything?
Is my Father then a God
For just fathering
And forgetting all of us?

- A. Jayalath Basnagoda

I see, the sea!

I see, the sea
with all its glee,
The beach we played
When we were three!

I see, the sea
Its far horizon,
Where the sea
Meet the sky!

I see, the sea
Its waters leap,
O'er high rocks
With sprays of foam!

I see, the sea
Its waves run wild,
Like rows of galloping
Snow white horses!

I see, the sea
Toss & turn,
Making eddies
In deep water!

I see, the sea
In stormy weather,
How it roars
And thunders on!

I see, the sea
Big ships adrift,
With loads of cargo
And people, too!

I see, the sea
Fishermen fishing,
In their boats

Both, day & night!

I see, the sea
When tsunami comes,
The tide that killed
So many of us!

I see, the sea
When it's calm,
Then there's no harm
As it's like balm!

I see, the sea
For all its worth,
If not for the sea

Where would we be?!

 - C. Mohanlal de Mel

Sobbing Moon

God gives light they say
night I shine most every day
adored - seeing white jasmines,
night flowers in waters do sing.
Lovers seated in flora swings
What beauty, Oh!
What beauty fills.
But, where today,
that silvery night
no torches, burgles
in full might
no space for the green
paddy to sway
no flocks for Shepards
"Pel Kavi" nay.
Benumbs - owls shriek,
hoots of hounds
for the fallen dead bodies,
every town
Why? My light used
for seduction, murder
Lord! take off my light,
am no cursed.

- Malathi Perera

Evil Twins

Greed and lust are evil twins,
They lead man to his ultimate ruin.
For lasting happiness, man has to set his sail,
His ship of prayer and wisdom ought to prevail.
Man will then be on the correct path,
Avoiding others' jealousy, enmity and wrath.
The right path will give him the solace to his soul,
Certainly keeping his passions under his control.
Greed and lust are cravings that cause anger,
Under their influence, man is truly in danger.
By nature, man wants to lead a happy life,
But his greedy approach brings him eternal strife.
Every step, every moment in life is perishable,
When passions dominate,
Man's position is lamentable.
Man's real prosperity consists not in greed,
But in giving of himself and of his substance, indeed.
Lust is a strong desire that influences man,
If he does fall a victim, it can surely upset his plan.
Foolish is the man who neglects life's reality,
There will be a day on which he'll repent seriously.
Sticks and stones may break man's bones,
And make him a man disease-prone.
But greed and lust may damage his soul,
And deprive him of achieving his goal.
Greed and lust are two evils that matter in man's life,
If he is to make his own life free of strife.
Let not man fall a prey to self-conceit,
All that awaits him in the end is sheer defeat.
With prayer and wisdom these passions can be overcome,
Happiness and inner satisfaction will be the final outcome.

- M.I. Mohamed Ansar

Incredible India

Shirley Nobel De Silva

As the plane circled above
a thousand lights
Over Chennai airport,
I looked down in awe,
With such joy in my heart,
for I was back again
In my home away from home,
Incredible India

Hundreds thronged the arrivals area,
As we fought our way through
jostling crowds
To the waiting tours bus
That would spirit us away
To unexplored places.

For this time we had joined
a tour group,
Taking 'A second chance' with
an amiable tour leader,
Who had a well planned itinerary
To show us this unforgettable land
Mysterious and appealing

The rest of the group?
Undoubtedly a band of lovely people
Looking expectantly ahead,
while being spirited away
Along the smooth highway,
to our first destination
The world renounced, 'Velankanni'

Oh what can I say?
And how should I say it?
Could I explain
The wonder and the magic
of that awesome shrine
As with tear brimmed eyes
I knelt to pray
Before the holy mother and
her beloved child.

We left those hallowed grounds
To the ornately carved Basilica
at Tanjore
Set Amidst acres of land
and roaming fauna
A restful night and off again,
past the amazing Tanjore dam,
To the wonders of 'Mysore'.

The jewel in the crown
and mysore's pride
The magnificent Maharajah's palace,
a sight to behold!
Amazing what a king could have
done in glittering gold,
Equally grand, his sisters legacy,
Lalitha Mahal,
Now an imposing hotel.

Along a twisting road on
'Chamundi Hills'
To the kovil set on towering boulders,
Past 'Nandi' kovil, down the slope again
And in the twilight hours,
To the magical Brindavan gardens.

Among myriad lights glistened
falling waters
That danced and swayed and
beckoned us
To gaze at its wondrous beauty.
We lingered on, mesmerized, but alas,
We parted, heart broken.

A visit that touched my life,
the church of the Infant Jesus,
The heart rending sight
of Jesus my Lord
Naited to a thorny tree,
A sight never to be forgotten,
Till the breath leaves my body.

Our next destination, enchanting 'Goa'
To the Basilica of St Catherine
and of St Francis Xavier
Where the skilfully arranged light
and sound presentation,
Touched our hearts, and opened
our minds,
To past history and reality.

Up to the 'Mangesi' kovil,
and by night full to the 'Mondev river',
An unbelievable expanse
of water that rippled and shone,
Dotted with cruise ships with
a thousand lights.
And we in one, blissfully gliding along.
To DJ music and dancing beauties.

An Early morning trek to
the house of the beautified
father Joseph Vas
Who chose Sri Lanka as
his second home.
A silent prayer at the Basilica
dedicated to his memory
And away to the 'kolva' beach
and the 'Aguda' fort,
Then a stroll along the Kalangudi sea.

A sad goodbye to Goa and on
our way the next morning
Past a landmark in Indian history,
the 'Karvar' port.
Its enclosed walls, never ending,
as we drove along.
Through highways stacked high
with sheaves of Harvested crops.
To the mighty city of Bangalore.

Teeming with traffic that crawled
like huge snails,
A Busier city I have yet to see
So, it was at early dawn that
we viewed the Basilica of St Mary,
And later the original church
of the Infant Jesus,
Where we reverently knelt to pray.

The technical museum with
its intriguing exhibits,
And the Lalbagh gardens sans
its flowers
A rush to the shops for those
Bangalore sarees,
But how could you possible
choose a few
When they are all so exquisite.

Little Mount Basilica
Where St Thomas was Imprisoned,
And San Thom Basilica where
his body lies,
Brought to our minds the
dedication of a nation
That treasured these saints
of Christianity,
And preserved their memories.

'It was the end of our
sightseeing, but wait,
What about more shopping in T nagar
And Spencer Plaza, Purasavakkam
and Chennai Plaza?
Not forgetting the fantastic
Saravanas and Pothys.
The choice was ours.

All too soon our wonderful
tour came to an end,
We made friends,
saw unforgettable sights
Gathered more information,
than we possibly could
Goodbye again ......... until
the next time,

Unforgettable, Incredible India.

One After Another

I am getting older and older
Older than the life span
That was mentioned
in the Bible
Seventy years, or eighty
If stronger.

Friends and relations
Who used to come to see me
One after another endlessly
To get something or other
Done by me of course
Have stopped coming now
As I am of no use
to them now

But those whom I kept at bay
Are coming one after another
And in batches too
I mean the sicknesses

- Arul